What is the principle of a photochemical reactor

Mondo Science Updated on 2024-03-04

The working principle of the photochemical reactor is mainly to use light energy to excite the substance, based on the absorption and transformation of the sample substance by light energy, and to initiate and control the chemical reaction by controlling the excitation conditions (such as light intensity, temperature, etc.). Simulate visible light, ultraviolet light, and visible light sources to irradiate the sample, and cooperate with the magnetic stirring device to make the sample receive light more fully and reach the temperature conditions required for the sample experiment, so that the excited state of the sample molecule is transformed, thereby triggering the photochemical reaction.

Specifically, when a molecule is excited by light, it absorbs light energy, making the electron active from the ground state to the excited state. In this process, molecules may undergo two types of relaxation processes: radiative relaxation and non-radiative relaxation.

1.Radiative relaxation is when a molecule releases excess energy in the form of radiation back to the ground state;

2.Non-radiative relaxation is the release of excess energy in the form of heat, back to the ground state.

The photochemical reactor is usually equipped with a light source controller, and the controller has a built-in light source converter, which can continuously adjust the power and have high stability.

The inner wall of the chamber will be made of radiation-proof material and has a visual viewing window to facilitate the observation of the sample reaction process.

In addition, it can be equipped with a high-power magnetic stirring device to fully mix the sample and receive light, so as to better catalyze the reaction in the light environment, so as to analyze the reaction products and free radicals of the sample and determine the reaction dynamic constant.

In photochemical reactions, the absorption of photons allows molecules to react at specific locations, which is especially important for systems where thermochemical reactions lack selectivity or reactants may be destroyed.

In addition, photons are considered to be the "purest" reagents because they are absorbed by the reactants and do not leave other new impurities in the system.

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